Scisys boosts employee pensions engagement

EXCLUSIVE: Scisys Group has seen 85% of its staff register to manage their pension scheme online and 47% opt to select their own investments following the launch of its workplace savings platform.

The IT services developer has also seen 30% of employees increase their pension contributions and 35% log-in to view their online pension account during the month of September alone.

The organisation decided to launch a workplace savings platform with Hargreaves Lansdown, to offer employees new savings options together in an online format, when its group personal pension (GPP), which it set up in 2006, started to look dated in terms of online functionality.

During the launch, in March 2013, Scisys Group also provided a series of financial education sessions to help staff make better savings decisions. These included nine group presentations and 194 individual meetings with employees across three sites.

Employees have been given the option to join the platform online by phone or by post. They have also had access to an iPhone or Android app, which they can use to view their pension and savings accounts.

Chris Cheetham, finance director of Scisys Group, said: “Now employees have what they need: access to a wide range of investments and an easy-to-use website to manage their pension.

“The new scheme is a vast improvement on the previous one and has been praised by our employees.”

Laith Khalaf, head of corporate research at Hargreaves Lansdown, added: “Scisys is a prime example of a professional organisation that’s staff had outgrown what a traditional personal pension could offer.

“These employees have really shown that, given the right tools and information, they will happily engage with their pension planning.”